Ladies!
Why should he have all the excitement? If you’re not a motorcyclist, why not book a day at the Forest Experience Rally School?
The area at Nant-yr-Arian on the A44 just north of Devils Bridge provides a good day's mountain biking, and also has red kite feeding at 3 o'clock in the afternoon (2 o'clock in winter).
Useful websites: Mountain Biking in Wales Forest Enterprise
Clive Powell runs his mountain biking from the Cwmdauddwr Arms, Rhayader, 01597 811343. He says "My guides and I will take you on routes suitable to your ability, and give advice and tuition if you want it. We also act as mechanics for you on the trail. A support vehicle usually meets us at midday, bringing us food and drink, spares and tools, and carrying your clothing, cameras etc. The Clive Powell Mountain Bike Centre has a good stock of accessories, clothing and parts. Good quality mountain bikes are available for hire and we carry out repairs and servicing of bikes."
Clive Powell's website Canolfan Tryweryn is the National White Water Centre, based near Bala, North Wales. "We developed the first commercial white water rafting operation in the UK in 1986, and since then we have grown to become the largest and most well-respected rafting organisation in the UK. The Tryweryn is a dam released river so water is often flowing when other British rivers are dry, thus producing a unique year round white water venue."If you are interested in history, the Llywernog Mine at Ponterwyd is well worth a visit.
The nearest centre for pony trekking or horse riding is the Rheidol Riding Centre at Capel Bangor. Their phone number is 01970 880863 (long ring) - no website.
If you like horses but don't want to ride, you may be able to visit a Welsh trotting race meeting. There are races nearly every Saturday and some mid-week.
John and Felicity Singleton invite you join them in a horse-drawn carriage ride with their pair of horses, Champion and Whistling Rufus, amid the stunning views of Mid Wales. See the wild flowers, the soaring kites and smell the perfume of the pines. Experience the joys of the countryside with out the effort of walking or cycling!
We have several different areas we use in Mid and North Wales which include parts of Ceredigion, Powys and Gwynedd. For people not riding bikes, some ideas for places to visit are given below. A couple of websites you might like to visit are West Wales (www.westwales.co.uk) and Visit Wales (www.visitwales.com.)
The council websites have tourism sections too: Ceredigion (http://tourism.ceredigion.gov.uk) and Powys (www.powys.gov.uk)
We can supply leaflets and more detailed directions (maps) on the activities and places to visit listed below.
If you don't want to make specific plans, the seaside towns of Aberystwyth (www.aberystwyth-day.co.uk) and Aberaeron are well worth a visit.
Other nearby towns are Machynlleth (www.machynlleth-today.co.uk) which has a market on Wednesdays, Llanidloes (www.llanidloes.org.uk) market Saturday.
If you prefer the countryside, there are plenty of places to walk and visit. The historic ruins of Strata Florida Abbey are near Pontrhydfendigaid, and at Devils Bridge there are scenic waterfalls (small admission fee).
Ynys-Hir on the A487 near Aberystwyth is a nature reserve and bird sanctuary by the Dovey estuary. There are plenty of forests with walking and picnic areas both to the south and north. There is a nature reserve just off the A470 (A44) between Rhayader and Llangurig, where, if you are lucky, you can see otters in the stream.
Children aged 7 to 12 will enjoy a visit to King Arthurs Labyrinth at Corris, near Machynlleth or the Centre for Alternative Technology just outside Machynlleth.
In Borth, on the coast north of Aberystwyth, there is the Animalarium with lots of ’hands-o’' action. Maybe a little more than an hour away, but very interesting, are dolphin and porpoise boats trips in Cardigan bay. There are several operators; visit the Ceredigion tourists website for an overview.